By Paras Saini & Shubham Sharma ·
Wave Invoice Reminders: How to Set Them Up and Their Limitations
You've been using Wave to create and send invoices. Three are now overdue. Wave's automatic reminder fired once — the same generic template for all three — but two clients haven't responded. You need to escalate the tone on one, pause reminders on another (it's in dispute), and check when you last chased the third. Wave can't do any of those things. This guide covers what Wave invoice reminders actually do, where they stop working, and what to add alongside Wave when the basic reminder isn't enough.
Key takeaways
- Wave does have automatic reminders — they fire on a fixed schedule (before due, on due date, after due) with the same template for every invoice regardless of amount or history
- What Wave can't do: escalate tone as an invoice ages, pause reminders on disputed invoices, log chase history per invoice, or show you an AR aging report broken by 0–30, 31–60, 60+ days
- Wave's reminder is adequate for clients who pay with a nudge; for clients who ignore 2+ reminders, Wave has no escalation path
- The gap Wave leaves: no today-view of what needs action, no per-invoice chase log, no tracking of which clients have been escalated to phone or formal notice
- Best setup for Wave users: Wave for invoice creation + InvoiceGrid for the collection workflow — two tools with no overlap, each doing what it's built for
What Wave's Automatic Invoice Reminders Actually Do
Yes — Wave does include an automatic invoice reminder feature. You can configure Wave to send reminder emails to clients before an invoice is due, on the due date, and after it becomes overdue. When enabled, Wave handles the sending automatically without you having to manually email each client.
This is genuinely useful for businesses with straightforward invoicing needs: a reminder before the due date reduces late payments from clients who simply forgot, and an automatic overdue reminder saves you the awkwardness of having to personally chase.
However, “automatic reminders exist” and “a complete AR follow-up system” are very different things. Wave's reminder feature is a starting point — it handles the basic case competently. The problems emerge when you have multiple overdue invoices at different stages, clients who need different approaches, and invoices that have been ignored through several reminders. That is where Wave's limitations become significant.
How to Set Up Invoice Reminders in Wave (Step by Step)
Here is exactly how to enable and configure automatic invoice reminders in Wave.
Step 1: Log in to your Wave account. Go to app.waveapps.com and sign in.
Step 2: Navigate to Invoices. In the left sidebar, click Sales, then Invoices. This is your invoices dashboard.
Step 3: Open Invoice Settings. Look for a Settings link or gear icon near the top of the Invoices page. Click it to open the invoice configuration options.
Step 4: Find the Reminders section. Within settings, locate the Payment Reminders or Automatic Reminders section. Wave typically offers three reminder points:
- Before due date — a courtesy pre-due reminder (e.g., 3 or 7 days before)
- On due date — a reminder sent on the day the invoice is due
- After due date — overdue reminders at intervals you set (e.g., 7 days overdue, 14 days overdue)
Step 5: Enable the reminders you want. Toggle on the reminder types you would like to use. You can typically set the number of days for each trigger. Wave will apply these settings to all invoices by default.
Step 6: Customise the reminder email (optional). Wave allows some customisation of the reminder email body — you can add a personal note or adjust the default message. The customisation options are limited compared to a dedicated AR tool, but you can add basic personalisation.
Step 7: Apply settings. Save your settings. Wave will now send automatic reminders for new invoices based on your configuration. For existing overdue invoices, check whether the settings apply retroactively or only to new invoices going forward — this varies by Wave version.
You can also send manual reminders for individual invoices. Open any invoice, click the More menu or send options, and choose to send a reminder directly. This gives you a one-off follow-up without changing your automatic settings.
For the actual email content you should be sending at each stage — not just Wave's default template — see the payment reminder email templates guide for copy you can customise and use.
Wave Reminder Limitations for AR Management
Here is an honest breakdown of where Wave's reminder and tracking features fall short for businesses that need to actively manage accounts receivable.
No tone escalation across reminder stages
Wave sends the same reminder template regardless of whether an invoice is 3 days overdue or 45 days overdue. Effective AR management requires tone escalation: a friendly nudge at 7 days, a firmer email at 14 days, a formal notice at 30 days. Wave cannot do this automatically. You either send the same mild tone to a client who has ignored four reminders, or you manage escalation manually outside Wave.
No per-invoice follow-up control
Wave's reminder settings apply globally — you cannot set a different reminder cadence for a high-value invoice vs. a small one, or pause reminders for an invoice that is in a payment dispute, or add an extra follow-up for a client who has gone quiet. Everything follows the same schedule.
No AR aging report
Wave shows you which invoices are overdue, but it does not generate a proper AR aging report — the breakdown of outstanding invoices into 0–30, 31–60, 61–90, and 90+ day buckets with total exposure at each risk level. This is the foundational report for understanding your AR health. Without it, you cannot see at a glance how much of your outstanding revenue is at risk.
No follow-up contact log
When you send a reminder in Wave, it records that a reminder was sent — but it does not give you a place to log a phone call, record a client's payment promise, note that a dispute has been raised, or track the full history of a collection effort. If you ever need to escalate to legal action, that history is critical.
No DSO or collection rate metrics
Wave does not calculate your Days Sales Outstanding, collection rate, or bad debt exposure. You cannot see whether your average payment time is improving or worsening, or what percentage of your invoiced revenue is being collected. These metrics are essential for managing cash flow and identifying process problems early.
No visual chase board or today view
Wave's invoices list shows all invoices sorted by date or status. It does not give you a Kanban-style visual board showing which invoices are in which collection stage, or a “today view” that surfaces exactly which invoices need action today. To figure out what to do next in your AR process, you have to manually scan through the list — which is slow and error-prone when you have many outstanding invoices.
What a Complete AR Follow-Up System Needs
A complete AR follow-up system — one that consistently gets invoices paid and minimises the time you spend chasing — has these components.
A defined follow-up cadence. Not just “reminders enabled” but a specific sequence: what happens at 3 days before due, 3 days overdue, 14 days overdue, 30 days overdue. Each stage has a different tone and action. See the guide to automating invoice reminders for how to design this sequence.
Escalating tone and actions. Stage 1 is friendly. Stage 2 is firm. Stage 3 is formal, with late fees referenced. Stage 4 is a demand notice. The system escalates automatically based on invoice age — not based on how you happen to feel about the client that week.
Prioritisation logic. When you have ten overdue invoices, the system tells you which three to focus on today. Priority is determined by invoice amount and days overdue — not which client emailed you most recently.
A chase history log. Every contact, every response, every promise is recorded against the invoice. This prevents double-chasing, informs escalation decisions, and protects you legally.
AR reporting. Aging breakdown, DSO, collection rate. These tell you whether the system is working and where the gaps are.
Wave provides pieces of this — basic reminders, a paid/unpaid status view — but not the complete picture. The gap between “reminders enabled in Wave” and “a working AR system” is where most late payment problems live.
Wave + InvoiceGrid: Handling What Wave Can't
The practical solution for Wave users is not to abandon Wave — it is a good, free invoicing tool. The solution is to add a dedicated AR management layer on top of your Wave invoicing workflow.
The workflow looks like this:
- Create and send invoices in Wave as normal.
- Log the invoice in InvoiceGrid when sent, with the due date and amount.
- InvoiceGrid surfaces the invoice in your today view when a follow-up is due.
- You send the follow-up (using the reminder templates at the appropriate stage).
- Log the contact and any client response in InvoiceGrid's chase history.
- Repeat at each stage. When the invoice is paid, mark it paid in both Wave and InvoiceGrid.
What this adds on top of Wave's native reminders:
- A visual Kanban board showing all invoices across collection stages at a glance
- A today view that tells you exactly which invoices need action today
- Per-invoice control over follow-up timing and stage
- A contact log for every invoice so you have the full chase history
- AR aging breakdown, DSO, and collection rate metrics
For the reminder templates to use at each stage of the follow-up sequence, see the payment reminder email templates guide. For a broader comparison of how InvoiceGrid fits alongside invoicing tools, see invoice tracking for small businesses.
When to Move Beyond Wave for Invoice Tracking
Wave is a legitimate choice for businesses at early stages — when you have a small number of clients, invoices are paid reliably, and the occasional reminder email handles most delays. These are the signals that you have outgrown Wave's invoice management capabilities.
You regularly have more than 5–10 overdue invoices at a time.
At this point, tracking status manually across Wave's invoices list becomes a genuine time cost and things start slipping through.
Some invoices reach 45–60+ days without resolution.
Wave's uniform reminders are not escalating appropriately for truly stuck invoices. You need a different tool and different approach for invoices that have ignored multiple reminders.
You cannot quickly answer “what is my total outstanding AR right now?”
If you have to manually add up invoice amounts from Wave's list to know your total exposure, you lack the visibility needed to manage cash flow proactively.
You have had to write off invoices that could have been collected with faster follow-up.
If invoices are reaching 90+ days and being written off when earlier escalation might have recovered them, the cost of Wave's limited AR tooling is measurable in lost revenue.
None of this means Wave is a bad tool — for invoicing, it is excellent and free. It means Wave's invoice management features were built for simplicity, not for businesses with real AR pressure. For the latter, the combination of Wave for invoicing and a dedicated AR tool like InvoiceGrid for collection management is more effective than either alone.
For the parallel guide on a similar tool, see FreshBooks invoice reminders and their limitations.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Wave automatically send invoice reminders?+
Yes, Wave can send automatic payment reminders for overdue invoices. You can enable automatic reminders in your Wave account settings, and Wave will send reminders at intervals you configure — such as 7 days before due, on the due date, and 7 days after. However, Wave's reminder system is relatively basic: it has limited customisation, sends reminders uniformly regardless of invoice age or amount, and does not give you detailed control over the reminder sequence for each individual invoice.
How do I set up automatic payment reminders in Wave?+
To set up automatic reminders in Wave: log in to your Wave account, go to Sales > Invoices, click on Settings or the gear icon, find the Reminders section, and enable automatic reminders. You can configure reminders before the due date, on the due date, and after. Wave will then send reminder emails automatically to clients based on your settings. Note that the feature availability may vary depending on your Wave plan and region.
Can Wave send multiple reminders for overdue invoices?+
Wave can send reminders at multiple points — before due, on due date, and after due — but the customisation is limited. You cannot create a detailed escalation sequence (e.g., friendly reminder → firm follow-up → formal notice with late fees) within Wave itself. All reminders use the same basic template, and there is no way to escalate tone automatically as an invoice ages further past due.
Does Wave have invoice tracking or AR analytics?+
Wave has basic invoice tracking — you can see which invoices are paid, unpaid, or overdue. However, it does not offer purpose-built AR analytics like a proper aging report broken into 0–30, 31–60, 61–90, and 90+ day buckets, DSO calculation, collection rate tracking, or a visual chase board. For businesses that need to actively manage and analyse their accounts receivable, Wave's tracking is not sufficient on its own.
What is the best alternative to Wave for chasing payments?+
If you want to continue using Wave for invoicing but need better AR management, the best approach is to add a dedicated AR layer alongside Wave rather than replacing it. InvoiceGrid is built specifically for tracking and chasing invoices — it provides a visual Kanban chase board, today view, AR aging reports, follow-up logging, and DSO tracking that Wave does not offer. You use Wave to create and send invoices, and InvoiceGrid to manage the collection process afterward.
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